Lord Bates
Main Page: Lord Bates (Conservative - Life peer)
Lord Bates
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of measures introduced to stimulate new housebuilding.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Hanham)
The Government monitor the rate of housebuilding very closely. For example, we completed 58,000 affordable homes in 2011-12, a third more than the average delivery of affordable homes in 10 years. We are investing more than £8 billion of public funding to support housing, including £4.5 billion investment in new affordable homes, and we remain on track to deliver 170,000 in this spending review period.
Lord Bates
I am grateful to my noble friend for that very encouraging Answer. When added to the tremendous boost to home ownership that the Chancellor announced in the Budget today, it will be widely welcomed. However, does she share my concern that recent research has shown that the average age of a first-time buyer in the United Kingdom is now 35 compared with 28 10 years ago and 24 in the 1960s? Does she agree that there are immense social as well as economic benefits to home ownership? Will she ensure that there is no let-up in extending home ownership to all people, particularly the young?
Baroness Hanham
My Lords, I congratulate my noble friend on managing to put down this Question on the day when there have been such helpful announcements in the Budget about home ownership. I agree with what he said about the difficulty for younger buyers in the market. I also agree that the aspiration of home ownership is extremely high and that is why I am particularly delighted that the Chancellor announced the £3.5 billion housing package, which includes an equity mortgage scheme, Help to Buy, as well as important changes to the right-to-buy scheme, all of which will help not only those mentioned by my noble friend but others in general.